Merry Christmas

This week has been a blur with Christmas activities. Monday began with the first of five days of Christmas carolling. What a wonderful tradition of bringing our entire learning community together to celebrate the season in song and I will say that this morning was extra special as it began with all the students signing "Family of Friends" arm in arm. In my 28 years of teaching and learning I have never seen such a beautiful moment of camaraderie. This school is a special place. Tuesday was twin day and many took advantage of "twinning". As well we had a special guest, Elder Florence Kelly, come to the school and read her book "Pancake and our Christmas Adventure". This story was special as it was about her first "Christmas feast" as a girl in Northern Ontario. Students K-4 were captivated by her storytelling and the simple message of gratitude and importance of family were heartfelt and meaningful. Following this presentation our k/1/2 classes presented the Red Meadows Fire Department with the donations from our Warmth and Love campaign. 504 articles of clothing including hats, coats, sweaters, blankets and mittens were donated! Firefighter Morris dropped these items off at Project Warmth and shared the following note: "Everyone at Project Warmth was over the moon. They said it was the biggest donation of the year. They were very grateful and wanted to send a big thank you to all the kids at Banded Peak School". So proud of the philanthropic spirit our students have, well done Banded Peak! And thank you to Mrs Shara Masiuk and the grade k/1/2 team for spearheading this initiative. Wednesday was Dress your Teacher Day and the grade 3/4's took full advantage! Mr Spelrem, Mrs Sudar and Mrs. Wicktor Neumeister have never looked so festive! Well done 3/4's. Thursday leadership students surprised all student with hot chocolate drinks. What a treat! Followed by Thursday night's Winter formal for gr 5-8 that was very well attended. It was fun to see the students in their winter best. Thank you to Mr Churchill and the leadership students for organizing this event. The gym looked beautiful and everyone had fun! Today, our gr 1/2 room's walls were taken down and new ones are already built. The renovation is in full swing and we can't wait to enjoy this refreshed space when we return. A huge thank you to Mrs Boersen for her leadership in making this happen. This wonderful week wrapped up with the 5/6's going to the ODR for skating, an afternoon sock hop and more! The festivities of the season have certainly began.

On that note, I would like to, on behalf of the staff of Banded Peak, wish all of you a very Merry Christmas. May your holiday break be filled with the magic of the season surrounded by family and friends. We will see you all again in the New Year.

Merry Ho Ho!

Mrs Moore